I had the great fortune of being able to visit Scotland during the Spirit of Speyside festival this year as part of my anniversary trip. Naturally I had to go to my favorite distillery, Glenfiddich, unfortunately I didn’t get until the day after they released their festival bottle but by a stroke of luck I was still able to grab one! This year’s expression was fully matured in Port Pipes which is a first for Glenfiddich. It was hard not to crack it while I was still in the UK but I managed to wait to get back to the states and then immediately opened it. So now that I’ve had a few pours let’s see how it stacks up!
Glenfiddich Spirit of Speyside 2019
Age: 15 years
Abv: 117 proof
Color: A medium amber with a red tint
Price: 200 GBP
Neat
Nose: Honey, sweet cherries and faint floral notes.
Taste: More honey and cherries with a little bit of oak and spice. Thick and luscious mouthfeel.
Finish: Long, warm sweet cherry pie.
Conclusion
This was delicious! I really enjoyed the strong Port influence, the mouthfeel and all the flavor that comes from the high proof. I had the chance to try several other cask strength Glenfiddich expressions while I was there and now I am very sad they aren’t readily available here in the States.
I do think with a few more years of aging this would have been a perfect 10 but I still really enjoyed it and am going to try and savor the rest of the bottle. I have more souvenir bottles to work through and review in the coming weeks!
4 Stars - Extraordinary whiskey: An all time favorite